Conventionally, an image pickup device such as a CCD has been used as an imaging device of a camera apparatus. A foreign substance such as dust or dirt might adhere to a surface of this CCD (i.e., a surface of a protection glass that protects an imaging face of the CCD). If a foreign substance is adhered to the surface of the CCD, the shadow of this foreign substance is unfavorably reflected on an image, which will degrade image quality. In particular, when an image of a high brightness object is taken, a depth of focus is increased upon stopping down of an aperture by an auto iris function, and a foreign substance on the surface of the CCD might be unfavorably seen as an image. To cope with this, there has conventionally been proposed a dust removal apparatus for removing a foreign substance adhered to a surface of a CCD of a camera apparatus. Such an apparatus is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2007-47487 (pp. 3-6, FIG. 1), for example.
In this conventional dust removal apparatus, at the time of removal of a foreign substance on the surface of the CCD, a lens of the camera apparatus is detached, and the dust removal apparatus is attached in place of this lens. Then, high pressure air is blown from an air blowing part of the dust removal apparatus, thereby blowing off and removing the foreign substance on the surface of the CCD.
However, in the case of the conventional dust removal apparatus, it is necessary to detach the lens of the camera apparatus and to attach the dust removal apparatus at the time of removal of a foreign substance on the surface of the CCD. Furthermore, after the removal of the foreign substance has been completed, it is necessary to detach the dust removal apparatus and to attach the lens. As described above, in the case of the conventional dust removal apparatus, at the time of cleaning of the surface of the CCD, it has been necessary to disassemble the camera apparatus and to assemble the camera apparatus again, and considerable time and effort have been required for a cleaning operation.